New Orleans attacker had history of divorce and financial problems

HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) -- Law enforcement officials said after reviewing surveillance video related to Wednesday's early morning attack in New Orleans, it appears the suspect acted alone in placing explosive devices around the area.

Shamsud-Din Jabbar, a 42-year-old Army veteran, killed 14 people and injured dozens more after driving his car into a crowd. He was killed during a shootout with police officers.

Federal agents said there was an ISIS flag on the truck Jabbar was driving during the attack.

"It's horrific what's happened; 15 people have died, many have been injured, but it appears to be a singular act conducted by somebody that was not directed, but was inspired, and that inspiration takes place in cyberspace," former FBI field agent James Conway told ABC13.

ABC News spoke with Jabbar's brother from his father's garage in Beaumont.

Abdur Jabbar, 24, told ABC News his half-brother was "loving," but he was "isolated," and he believes that could have been what led him to Wednesday's attack.

13 Investigates found Shamsud-Din Jabbar had at least three marriages that ended in divorce.

Records for one of his divorces show his attorney filed a motion in September 2021 to withdraw as counsel, saying as an attorney, he "is unable to effectively communicate with Shamsud-Din Jabbar in a manner consistent with good attorney-client relations."

Jabbar also had financial troubles, saying in a January 2022 email related to his divorce settlement that "I can not afford the house payment."

As part of custody and child support discussions, Jabbar said one of the property management companies he owns lost $28,000 in income in 2021.

Now, his family said they are trying to make sense of how the person they knew could carry out this attack.

Christopher Raia, deputy assistant director at the FBI, said Jabbar rented a pickup truck that was used in the attack on December 30.

He drove from Houston to New Orleans on Dec. 31 and posted a series of disturbing videos to social media just before the attack.

"There were five videos posted on Jabbar's Facebook account, which are timestamped beginning at 1:29 a.m. and the last at 3:02 a.m. (Wednesday). In the first video, Jabbar explains he originally planned to harm his family and friends but was concerned the news headlines would not focus on the 'war between the believers and the disbelievers,'" Raia said. "Additionally, he stated he had joined ISIS before this summer. He also provided a will and testament."

Abdur said his brother's actions "do not represent the Muslim faith."

The Council on American-Islamic Relations on Thursday said one of the victims in the attack was Kareem Badawi, a Muslim American.

CAIR called the attack "cowardly."

"If reports that the perpetrator was a man with a history of drunk driving and spousal abuse who plotted to kill his family before supposedly experiencing dreams telling him to join Daesh are true, then his crime is the latest example of why cruel, merciless, bottom-feeding extremist groups have been rejected by the overwhelming majority of the Muslim world - from Islamic scholars, to mosques, to organizations, and to individual Muslims," CAIR said in a statement. "We strongly denounce this crime, we stand in solidarity with the people of New Orleans, we encourage anyone with relevant information to come forward immediately, and we pray for a full recovery of those impacted by this crime."

For updates on this story, follow Kevin Ozebek on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

Contact 13 Investigates

Have a tip? A problem to solve? Send a tip below. If you don't have a photo or document to include, just hit 'skip upload' and send the details. (On mobile? You can open our form by tapping here.)